Description of Greece

​To Archippus of Mytilene, who conquered the men who entered the boxing, the Mytileneans attribute another such thing for his glory: namely, that he won the crown at Olympia, Pytho, Nemea, and the Isthmus when he was not far advanced in age from twenty years. As for the boy stade-runner Xenon, son of Calliteles, from Lepreus in Triphylia, Pyrilampes of Messene made his statue; but Cleinomachus the Elean, we do not know who the maker is; Cleinomachus was proclaimed for a victory in the pentathlon.

​As for Pantarces the Elean, the inscription upon his statue says that it is a dedication of the Achaeans; for he made peace between the Achaeans and the Eleans, and through him those who had been captured on both sides while they were at war obtained their release. This Pantarces also won a victory with a race-horse, and there is a memorial of his victory at Olympia. Olidas the Elean was dedicated by the ethnic league of the Aetolians, and Charinus the Elean is dedicated for victories in both the double-stade and the race in armor; beside him is Ageles of Chios, who conquered in the boys’ boxing, the work of Theomnestus of Sardis.

​As for Cleitomachus of Thebes, Hermocrates, the father of Cleitomachus, dedicated his statue, and the things for his glory were as follows. At the Isthmus he wrestled down the men wrestlers, and on the same day he conquered in battle those who entered both the boxing and the pancratium; and his victories at Pytho are all in the pancratium, three in number; at Olympia, this Cleitomachus was proclaimed, second after Theagenes of Thasos, for both the pancratium and boxing.

​Now, in the pancratium, he had already won the victory in the hundred and forty-first Olympiad; but the following Olympiad had this Cleitomachus as a competitor in both the pancratium and boxing, and it also had Caprus the Elean, who was eager on the same day to both wrestle and contend in the pancratium.

​Since Caprus had already achieved a victory in the wrestling, Cleitomachus explained to the Hellanodikai that it would be in accordance with justice for them if they should call the pancratium before he received wounds from boxing. He spoke what was reasonable, and the pancratium being thus called, though he was defeated by Caprus, he nevertheless faced the boxers with a vigorous spirit and an unwearied body.

​The Erythraeans of Ionia dedicated Epitherses, son of Metrodorus, who won two boxing victories at Olympia, twice at Pytho, and also at Nemea and the Isthmus. While they dedicated this Epitherses, the Syracusans dedicated two statues of Hieron as a public gift, and a third was dedicated by the children of Hieron. I declared a little earlier that this Hieron was homonymous with the son of Deinomenes and was likewise tyrant of Syracuse.

​And the Paleans, the fourth part of the Cephallenians, dedicated a man of Elis, Timoptolis, son of Lampis; these Paleans were called Dulichians in more ancient times. There is also dedicated Archidamus, son of Agesilaus, and a man, whoever he may be, presenting the appearance of a man hunting. As for Demetrius, who led an army against Seleucus and was captured in the battle, and Antigonus, the son of Demetrius, let one know that they are dedications of the Byzantines.

​To Eutelidas the Spartan came two victories in the boys’ class in the thirty-eighth Olympiad: one in wrestling, the other in the pentathlon; for then for the first and last time the boys were called to compete in the pentathlon. The statue of Eutelidas is ancient, and the letters on the pedestal are dim with time.

​After Eutelidas, there is dedicated next Areus, the king of the Lacedaemonians, and beside him Gorgus of Elis. To Gorgus alone of men down to my time have there been four victories at Olympia in the pentathlon, and one victory each in the double-stade and the race in armor.

​The one beside whom the boys stand, they say is Ptolemy, the son of Lagus; beside him are two statues of an Elean man, Caprus, the son of Pythagoras, who won the crown in both wrestling and the pancratium on the same day; to this Caprus, first of men, came these two victories. The competitor who was overcome by him in the pancratium, my account has already shown; but in wrestling he threw Paeanius of Elis, who had won the wrestling in the previous Olympiad, and at the Pythian games had been crowned in the boys’ boxing, and later in the men’s class in both wrestling and boxing on the same day.